Hugh Schuitemaker, Murray Pioneer

The decade-long dream of a well-known Waikerie Football Club figure has been realised with the completion of a major new community facility.

The Waikerie Football Club (WFC) last weekend held a soft launch opening and chair auction event for the recently completed Waikerie Community Hub.

In a speech at the event, WFC Build Committee chair Brendan Sidhu said construction of the facility was “10 years in the making”.

“This is a great facility for our community,” Mr Sidhu said.

“To everyone who has helped on the way this is a fantastic legacy you have all done for our community.

“They say it takes a village to bring up a child. It has taken much more to get this facility funded and built.”

Barker MP Tony Pasin said “this facility is a game changer for the community of Waikerie, adding to the already impressive collection of upgraded sporting facilities across the Riverland”.

“When I first became Barker MP, many sport and recreation facilities across the Riverland required significant investment and modernisation,” Mr Pasin said.

“I’ve worked with Local Government and sporting clubs across the Riverland to change that. The completion of this riverfront Community Hub, at Waikerie, is another piece of that puzzle.

“Sport and recreation facilities are about more than just encouraging active participation in sport, which is in itself important, but these are also community hubs, adding to the rich and vibrant sense of belonging that is intrinsic feature across the Riverland.

“This project acts to strengthen the community of Waikerie and surrounds making the Riverland an even better place to live, work and raise a family. This is a facility that I hope everyone in the Riverland is proud of, I know I certainly am.”

Mr Sidhu said funding from both state and federal governments, and sponsors of the club, had been crucial in ensuring the facility could be built.

This article appeared in the Murray Pioneer, 19 February 2025.